U.S. Praises Yemen for Probe That Found Iran Shipped Weapons

The U.S. praised the government of
Yemen for having intercepted a vessel attempting to smuggle a
cache of Iranian-supplied weapons, explosives and other
munitions to armed insurgents in the country.

“The origin of the vessel and weapons underscores Iran’s
ongoing evasion of six relevant UN Security Council
resolutions,” U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland
said in a statement today. “Iran continues to defy the
international community through its proliferation activities and
support for destabilizing action in the region.”

Yemen’s navy, cooperating with the U.S. military, stopped a
ship carrying weapons on Jan. 23 that had entered Yemeni waters
in the Arabian Sea. The arms included ground-to-air missiles,
explosives, rockets and materials used to build booby-trapped
devices.

The Yemeni government’s investigation revealed that the
weapons were loaded onto the vessel in Iran and were intended
for armed insurgents in Yemen, the State Department said. Iran
has denied claims that it shipped the weapons, according to a
Tehran Times report Feb. 3.

“The international community must continue to speak with
one voice and work to ensure that Iran adheres to all of its
international obligations,” the State Department said in its
statement.